Pneumatic separator.



H. N. MIDDLETON.

PNEUMATIU SEPARATOR. v APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2, 1907.

Patented Nov. 1611909 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

H. N. MIDDLETON.

PNEUMATIC, SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2. 1907.

Patented N0v. 16, 1909.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

HARRY N. MIDDLETON, OF WESTVILLE, NEW JERSEY.

PNEUMATIC SEPARATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented am. s, was.

Application filed February 2, 1907. Serial No. 355,422.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, }IARRY N. hlIDDLETON, a citizen of the United States, residing in Yestville, New Jersey, have invented certain Improvements in Pneumatic Separators, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatusfor separating light particles from heavier particles of material by the action of an air current.

The object of my invention is to so construct a pneumatic separator that it can be used either in connection with a suction blower or in connection with an air blast apparatus.

The invention relates also to means for regulating the blast so that the apparatus can be adjusted to properly act upon the particular material being separated.

In the accompanying drawings :l igure 1, is a vertical sectional view of my improved pneumatic separator; Fi 2, is a sectional plan view on the line 22, Fig. 1; Fig; 3, is a view of one of the regulating screws, and Figs. 4, 5 and 6, are views illustrating modifications of the invention.

A is the casing of the separator having a cylindrical portion a and tapered portions a-a*, although the form of the casing may be modified, as desired. In the bottom of the casing a tailing spout 0, having a gate a tor the discharge of coarse materials.

13 is the air inlet pipe curved, as shown, so to terminate at the center of the chamber formed by the casing A. This air inlet pipe has a series t curved diaphragms t for the purpose of dividing the air it through the pipe. This air'inlet pipe may connect with anair blast apparatus, or may simply open to the atmosphere it the separator is to be worked under partial vaciuun.

Communicating with the casino ot' the separator is the exhaust passage D. This passage may be connected with a suction fan, if it is desired to operate the apparatus under a partial vacuum, The passage l), in the'presentinstance, is circular and conncets with two pipes D, quad 'angular in cross section as shown in Fig. 2, separated.

one from the other to allow for the pl aciug ot the driving gear described hereafter, ii

is a tube extending through the center or the passage D for the introduction oi"? the material to be separated. As shown in Fig.

1, this tube is enlarged at e and within this enlargement of the tube is a s i'tttltlcl' l cousislin of a shaft f and a disl; j". The shaft extenus through a bearing in a plate it" mounted in the upp r end ol' the casing and has a bevel gear wheel which meshes with the bevel gear on a driving shal l mounted in hearings on the plate of and having a driving pulley f. By this means ihe spreader is rotated so that when llltllt'flhii drops thereon it is thrown out by centrifugal force aga nst the inner surface o'tflhe eulargell portion a of the tube.

Mounted between the inlet tube l'l for tho material and the air inlet pipe B is a double cone 1. The upper portion i oi? the cone is, in the present instance, shorter than the lower portion 5'. The cone is supported, in the present instance, on a spider l" t-EOtllll'tfil to the casing and held in place by stay rods '5 but the cone may be supported and held in place in any suitable manner without departing from the essential features or the invention. i

The upper portion of the cone preferably extends into the enlargement c of the tube E, as shown, insuring an even distribution of the material as it falls from the walls of the tube onto the surface of the cone and the air as it passes from the pipe 13 is preferably detlected by a coni a1 ring 7), which spreads a portion of the air so that some portion of the air will strike the cone, while the balance will be deflected and fill the space between the cone and the casing so that the air as itpasses upwari in the direction ot the arrows will meet the down tlowing material as it passes oil? the upper portion of the cone 1 and the light particles or material will be forced to travel with the air and away from the cone and through the outlet passage I), while the heavyparticles will overcome the INQSSUIU of air and will llon' into the lower portion of the separutorand pass out. the tailii spout In ln ()l'u lo iltijllbi the ap 'mrutus so as to *lllill'llltl r--'il(, mat rial, ,5 mount within the casing an till" just shell (3*. h Hug a conical portion 7 and i ,"limlrical airmen g Q'this ,flin lric:.l portion is adapted to slide within the outlet filllililiialllllg the force of the air blast l lilfiz loss of the puirlieles ol the loo being mounted upon a slot under the and 3, via, by screw rods y a, that if the Shell is ing around the cone,

heavy particles will be lowered some of the carried with the air through the outlet passage 1), whereas, it it were raised, fewer 0 the heavy particles would be carried by the air. l3 this arrangement ready means is pro'-.'idcd for regulating the separation 0 the particles or nnrterial. l have shown one method of adjusting this shell in Figs. 1

which pass through screw threaded lugs on the easing, and adapted to swivel in a block 9 on the conical portion 5 of the shell so that by turning the screws the shell can be raised and lOWQlQtl, but it will be understood that other means may be used without departing from the invention.

In l ig. 4t, I have shown a modification of my invention, in which I mount a conical liange c. on the end of the enlargement e of the tube E, and I inclose the lower end of the cone 1 in a cylinder B having a conical section 0- whose walls, in the present in stance, are parallel with the walls of the cone. This cylinder is somewhat larger than the air inlet pipe B and this tends toconcentrate the air around the lower walls of the cone and the hood 0 tends to retain the particles on the cone so that separation would be at. the greatest diameter of the double cone.

In Fig. 5, I. have shown a movable shell G, having a flared section g"; the cylindrical portion of the shell fitting into the lower portion of the casing A. Any suitable means may be devised for raising and lowering this shell, either extending below the shell, as in the drawing, or extending above the shell.

In Fig. 6, I have shown a modification in which the cone 1 is vertically adjustable, tube I attached in any suitable manner at the bottom to the inlet pipe B or other fixture. The cone is secured in position to which it is adjusted by a confining screw 1' and is guided at the upper end by a sleeve 6" arranged to slide upon the enlarged portion 6 of the tube E. The head 2' of the cone is separated from the body "N form an air outlet so that air entering tltube 1 will how out the h. ad 12 and aid in separating the particles. An adjustable shell G may be u as shown or may be dispensed with and all the adjustment made by shifting the cone.

The operation of the separator is as fol lows z- When'it is worked under air pres sure then the pipe 13 is connected to any suitable blower that will force air atthe velocity desired into the casing A. The

will,.s1.)read the air as it conical ring 6 leaves the pipe l3 and the lower portion of the double cone will still further spread the air. The material is fed through the tube E l l f l l l l l l l l and as it falls upon the spreader, which is 'ota'ted, it is thrown against the walls of the enlarged portion 6 ofthe tube and falls onto the upper portion of the cone I. As the material meets the air in its downtlow from the edge of the cone the lighter particles will be carried by the air to the outlet 1), while the heavy particles will [low into the lower portion of the casing and be discharged through the tailing spent. The shell G is adjusted in the first place to a position to concentrate the air and to properly separate the material.

I claim l. The combination of a casing, a double cone mounted within the casing, a tailing spout in the lower end of the casing, an exhaust pipe communicating with the upper end of the casing, an air inlet pipe opening into the casing directly under the cone, a material feed tube having an enlarged end and situated directly above the cone, :1 spreader, means for rotating the spreader, a shell having a cylindrical 'and a conical portion surrounding a part of the cone, and means for adjusting the shell so as to increase or diminish the space between the shell and the cone.

2. The combination of a casing, a double cone consisting of two conical structures united base to base within the casing, an air inlet pipe entering the lower portion of the casing and opening at a point directly under the cone, a tube placed to discharge ma terial upon the cone and having an enlarged end portion inclosing the upper end thereof, a spreader within the enlarged end ofthe tube, and means for rotating the spreaderso as to distribute the materlal evenly over" INA-1U; 3. The combination of a casing, a double" casing, an air inlet the outside of the cone.

cone mounted within the pipe under the cone, an inlet tube for ma terial, an outlet pipe for the air and liner particles of material, said outlet pipe hav ing a tubular body portion conne ed with the casing, two quadrangular pipes con nected to the tubular portion, with a spreader mounted in the material feed tube,-

and gearing for driving the spa-carter si ated in the space between the two quad rangular pipes.

l. The combination of a casing having a cylindrical portion and conical cxteinionsat each end, a lower extension, an outlet pipe for air and lightmaterial connected to the upper cc tension, a double cone mounted withiir the casing, an air inlet pipe entering from the side of the casing and curvlal so as to d charge directly under the cone, a series cl diaphragms in said pipe, a conical rin; mounted above the opening in the pipe, an inlet tube for material having an enlarged end surrounding the u ipci. portion of he iln tailin siout coniwctcd to the C3 means for vertically means for vertically ad3ust1ng the cone.

above the cone, and an exhaust and the lighter particles of material, sa d cone, a spreader within said enlarged portion ofthe tube, means for rotating the spreader, a shell having a cylindrical portion extending into the air outlet pipe and 'havlng a conical portion situated between the casing and the upper portion of the cone,

-With means for vertically adjusting said shell.

5. The combination in a separator, of a casing, a double cone mounted within the casing, an air'inlet pipe directly under the cone and an inlet pipe for material directly above the cone, anexhaust pipe'for' the air and the lighter particles of material, a shell mounted between ti; casing and the cone,

djusting the shell, and

6..lhe'combination 111 a separator, of a casing, a double cone mounted within the casing, an air inlet pipedirectly under the cone, an inlet pipe for material directly pipe for air having an upwardly flared endinclosing the lower portion of the cone, a feed tube for material situated directly above thecone and discharging upon its conicalsurface, said feed tube having an enlarged end inclosing a portion of the cone, an air outlet pipe for the fine particles of material, and a conical downwardly flaring shell within the casing outside of the end of the :feed tube and surrounding-a portion of the cone.

8. The combination of a casing, a double cone, an air inlet pipe-communicating with the casing directly under the cone, an inlet pipe for material above the cone and discharging directly onto the cone, an air outlet pipe for the fine particles of'material communicating with the upper portion of the casing, a conical shell mounted within the casing and surrounding a portion of the cone, screw rods 50 connected to the shell, and threaded bearings on the casing through which the screw rods pass so that on turning said screw rods the shell can'be raised or lowered.

' In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

HARRY N; MIDDLETON.

Witnesses:

E 11. LOUGHERY,

A. BARR. 

